One of the best parts about working at HVAF is working with teammates who care so deeply about the veterans we serve. Today, I want to highlight one of those teammates: HVAF’s longest serving employee, Fred Young. We are celebrating Fred this month as he marks 20 years at our organization!

Fred joined HVAF in March 2005 as a Peer Mentor, a position he still holds today. Through the help of Pathway to Recovery, Fred was 5 years into his own recovery from substance use when he joined HVAF. A mentor saw something in him and thought he would be able to help other veterans battle addiction.

Fred, HVAF Peer Mentor

I recently chatted with Fred about his early days at HVAF. The staff was much smaller and worked out of an old factory on the near-east side. HVAF’s main (and only) focus in those days was providing transitional housing to veterans experiencing homelessness. Fred joined the team as a Peer Mentor, someone who through his own experience could show veterans struggling with addiction the hope available in recovery.

For the last 20 years, Fred has been an invaluable member of Team HVAF. He regularly shares one of his old sayings that he’s found to be true to provide encouragement to those he encounters. Imparting wisdom like:

“If you do the right thing, things have a way of working out.”

 

Fred has been a part of changing, and saving lives of veterans in our community. Fred shared that helping others battling the disease of addiction can feel discouraging. It is hard work and sometimes we lose. But, given the opportunity to reflect, he sees each veteran who finds freedom like the ripple on a pond after a stone is thrown in. With two decades as a Peer Mentor under his belt, the ripple of his impact in Indianapolis is undeniable.

Fred is proud of his work at HVAF, saying that HVAF means hope for so many. He is amazed at the growth of our organization. We are now a team of 72, offering housing and utility assistance, employment and legal services, and basic needs support through our food, clothing, and hygiene pantries.

Fred humbly shared that he spent years struggling with substance use, but “somebody waited for me. Waited for me to want help.” Now, “one day at a time,” Fred waits for veterans at HVAF, helping them walk their own path to sobriety.